Supporting Research on Voter Registration and TurnoutVoting May Be Habit Forming, by Alan S. Gerber, Donald P. Green, and Ron Shachar presents evidence that voting for the first time will lead to voting in the future.

New legislation requires all federal agencies to provide "educational and training" materials about the Constitution each year to the government's 1.8 million civilian employees -- all of whom, after all, take an oath to support and defend the national charter. Pending LegislationSan Francisco High School Voter Registration Legislation

On April 5th the San Francisco Board of Supervisors adopted a resolution to explore instituting a voter preregistration system for high school students. Resolution 271-05, sponsored by Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi, calls for preregistering students as they enter their junior year.

On February 21st, the Education, Health and Environmental Affairs Committee approved former FairVote board member and first-year Senator Jamie Raskin's proposal to require students to learn about the U.S. and Maryland Constitution. The bill also gives eligible students the opportunity to register to vote in class.

"Most Californians register to vote not because a political cause has touched their heart, but rather because they checked a box on a form at the Department of Motor Vehicles when they received or renewed their driverís license."